By The Book
By the Book: Shigidi And The Brass Head Of Obalufon, with Wole Talabi
In his debut novel, speculative fiction writer Wole Talabi draws on Yoruba mythology to tell an adventure story that spans space and time. At the heart of the tale is Shigidi, a disgruntled nightmare god who partners up with Nneoma, a succubus with a mysterious past. Together, they find themselves …
33:22Clean
By the Book: Confessions of an Old Boy: The Dato Hamid Adventures
15 years on from its first successful run, Kam Raslan's Confessions of an Old Boy: The Dato Hamid Adventures has been reissued, with a brand new look, and a previously unpublished story. We speak to Kam about the appeal and delight of writing about Dato Hamid and in his unique voice and what it was…
36:19Clean
By the Book: Writer's Postcards, by Dipika Mukherjee
Bringing together her love for writing with her love for travel and discovering new cultures, Dipika Mukherjee's Writer's Postcards is a collection of essays spanning decades that capture her observations of the world. Part travelogue and part memoir, the book brings the personal, the political, an…
31:15Clean
By the Book: Book Club December 2023 - Bone Weight and Other Stories
For our last Book Club of the year, we're both reading something we're very excited about: Shih-Li Kow's Bone Weight and Other Stories. This cross-genre collection of 25 short stories explore relationships and periods of transition, and is populated with complex characters. We discuss how the colle…
27:15Clean
By the Book: Writing Salleh Ben Joned
Salleh Ben Joned has been described in many ways - maverick poet, bad boy of Malaysian literature, innovator of language, and by some detractors, even anti-Malaysian. Since his passing in 2020, there have been a number of attempts to memorialise him and capture his legacy, and "Salleh Ben Joned - T…
28:29Clean
By the Book: George Town Literary Festival 2023
GTLF is back, and this year the theme is Terra Incognita! We speak to Pauline Fan and Adriana Nordin Manan about the curatorial process this year, how the festival has expanded beyond panels and conversations, and what unknown territories they're hoping to explore. And then in Footnotes, they each …
28:41Clean
By the Book: Malaysian Tamil Literature
In this episode, we explore Malaysian Tamil writing - both the rich tradition that exists here, but also the challenges in nurturing the scene and garnering a wider readership. We’re joined by Mannar Mannan Maruthai, who gives us an introduction to the scene, and shares recommendations, including w…
19:44Clean
By the Book: Children's Book Club - The Giver
As Children's Day in Malaysia is traditionally celebrated every last Saturday of October, we're celebrating children's literature this entire month, by doing a Book Club with a different child every week. In this episode, we're joined by 14-year-old Lily Lau, whose choice is the Newbery Prize-winni…
23:58Clean
By the Book: Children's Book Club - The Magic Faraway Tree
As Children's Day in Malaysia is traditionally celebrated every last Saturday of October, we're celebrating children's literature this entire month, by doing a Book Club with a different child every week. In this episode, we're joined by 8-year-old Declan Goh, whose pick is a perennial favourite of…
20:35Clean
By the Book: Children's Book Club - Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone
As Children's Day in Malaysia is traditionally celebrated every last Saturday of October, we're celebrating children's literature this entire month, by doing a Book Club with a different child every week. In this episode, we're joined by 10-year-old Lana Sofia Pointon, who suggested we talk about t…
19:29Clean